Flush handle door latch



Feh 14 WSQ H. A. NELSON FLUSH HANDLE DOOR LATCH Filed May 20, 1946INVENTOR. Horace A. Ne/soh @TORNE% Patented Feb. 14, 1950 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE W 2,497,624 FLUSH HANDLE noon LATCH Horace A. Nelson,-Mission, Kans. Application May 20, 1946, Serial No. 670,879

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to building hardware in the nature of latches orlooks usable upon doors, windows or other closures where a releasablelatch is desirable.

The important object of this invention is to provide a latch for doorsor the like, the parts whereof are completely confined within a caseforming a part of the assembly when the latch is in the normal positionholding the door closed.

Further objects of this invention are to provide a flush handle doorlatch, the two handles whereof serve to close respective openings in acase forming a part of the latch; to provide a latch wherein one of apair of handles may be manually manipulated to actuate the bolt withoutaffecting the position of the remaining handle; and to provide a latchassembly for doors or other swinging closures that may be installedwithout presenting laterally projecting members that might catch orcause difficulty where a smooth surface is necessary or desirable.

Further objects of the invention include the provision of a door latchthat is particularly useful with such closure as automobile and airplanedoors; the provision of rugged and relatively simple structure forembodying the broad concepts of this invention and the provision of aunitary door latch that may be installed as a single part in place oflatch assemblies now commonly employed. Other aims of theinvention willappear during the course of the following specification referring to theaccompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the flush handle door latch made inaccordance with the present invention and showing the same in theoperative position on a closure.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 11-11 of Fig. 1 looking in thedirection of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line III-III of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line IV--IV of Fig. 2.

The form of latch chosen for illustration comprises a case l forming ahousing for the operating structure and a major portion of a bolt I2that is reciprocably mounted in the case I0 through the medium of apartition [4 and one end wall It Openings [8 and in partition and endwall l4 and 16 respectively receive bolt I2 and a shoulder 22 on bolt l2bears against one I and 4. The projected portion of bolt I2 is formed asShown in Figs. 1 and 2 to allow closure 26 to be completely closedwithout manipulating the parts of the lock hereinafter to be described.The cooperating apertured latch plate usually installed on the framedefining the opening which is covered by closure 2% when the same isshut is not here illustrated.

Bolt I2 is moved inwardly upon manipulation of either one of a pair ofhandles 23 and 38 respectively. Each handle is swingably supported bycase In through the medium of a pivot pin, and in the case of handle 28,pivot pin 32 lies intermediate the end of the handle as illustrated inFig. 2. A link 34 is secured to one end of handle 28 as at 36. Whilethis link 34 is pivotally attached to handle 28 at its one end, theopposite end thereof is slotted as at 38 to receive cross pin 49 mountedin bolt l2. Handle is joined to bolt l2 b a link 42 similar in nature tolink 34. One end of link 42 is pivotally attached to handle 30 as at 44.The other end of link 42 is provided with the slot 46 through which pinprojects as seen in Fig. 4.

Such structure as just set forth allows independent movement of eitherhandle 28 or 39 as the case may be without disturbing the position ofthe other handle. When bolt [2 is in the normal position, pin 40 is atone end of slots 38 and 46 and when handle 28, for example, is moved tothe dotted line position shown in Fig. 2, link 34 will be shifted tocarry bolt I2 inwardly to the dotted line position thereof in saidfigure. During such action, pin Ml will ride in slot 46 of link 42 andthat said link together with its associated handle 30 will not changeits position.

Case ID has an opening in each of its opposite side walls to receivehandles 28 and 30 respectively. Opening 43 in one side wall of case l0receives handle 3% as illustrated in Fig. 1. When the handles are in thenormal position, they lie within the confines of case l0 andsubstantially close their respective associated openings. Thus acompletely flush arrangement along the outer faces of case ll] ispresented.

Each handle is substantially identical and has a stem portion extendingfrom a relatively wide gripable part 52 that is undercut along itsopposite longitudinal edges to afford an easy grip. When the handle 28is moved back to the full line position from the dotted line positionshown in Fig. 2, spring 24 will shift bolt l2 outwardly to the operativecondition. Link 34 is arched as is link 42 and a portion of each ofthese links parallels a portion of the length of bolt l2 A door latchcomprising a hollow case having a pair of opposed openings therein; anelongated bolt reciprocably mounted in said case and" having one endthereof normally projecting out wardly beyond the case; a spring in thecase and coiled about the bolt adjacent said one end thereof for holdingthe bolt biased toward one end of its path of travel in said normalposition; a manually manipulable, bolt-actuating element within each ofsaid openings respectively, each element including a handle, and a stemin the case, said stem being pivotally mounted intermediate the endsthereof within the case for swinging movement of the handle 4 thereof toand from a position substantially entirely within the case flush withthe proximal outermost face of the case; a link pivotally secured at oneend thereof to the free end of each stem respectively and disposedentirely within said case, each link having an elongated slot adjacentthe opposite end thereof, said bolt extending between the links; and apin on the bolt adjacent the opposite end thereof and extending throughsaid slots, the pivotal mountings of said stems to the case and to thecorresponding links being in transverse planes through the "boltintermediate said ends thereof. HORACE A. NELSON. REFERENCES CITED Thefollowing references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,055,688 Halinka Sept. 29, 1936FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 7 557,797 Great Britain Dec'. 6,1943

